After Tibet, Xi asserts victory in Uyghur Muslim-dominated Xinjiang to reject rights abuse claims

Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the restive region of Xinjiang this week to mark the 70th anniversary of the territory under Chinese Communist rule. Xinjiang, located in the far-western region of China, has been marred by violence allegedly perpetrated by Xi’s administration over Uyghur Muslims.

During his visit, the third in three years, Xi declared that the Communist Party would push its policies to pacify and develop the region and said that Xinjiang’s culture can be integrated with that of the Chinese society.

“Practice has proved that the party’s strategy for governing Xinjiang in the new era is scientific and effective, and that it must be adhered to for the long term,” Xi said.

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The Uyghur Muslim-majority autonomous region has been in the spotlight over extreme “correctional” measures by the Xi regime. The US and other countries have accused China of committing human rights violations in its crackdown on Uyghurs and other Muslim ethnic minority groups in Xinjiang, allegations that have led many Western companies to avoid operating in the region.

This came weeks after Xi visited Tibet to assert Chinese authority over the Buddhist-dominated region Chinese communist regime occupied in the 1950s.

What did Xi do in Xinjiang?

The Chinese president went to Xinjiang’s capital, Urumqi, on Wednesday to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, established in 1955 after China granted some political autonomy to the region.

With this, Xi has become the first Chinese leader to attend the anniversary events in Xinjiang. Last month, he also visited Tibet to attend similar celebratory events.

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The Communist Party has long faced challenges in governing Xinjiang, a mountainous region bordering Central Asia and home to around 12 million Turkic-speaking Muslim Uyghurs. For decades, separatist sentiment among the Uyghur population has persisted, at times erupting into violent attacks targeting symbols of Beijing’s rule and the Han Chinese majority.

Why does it matter?

James Leibold, a professor at Australia’s La Trobe University, told the Wall Street Journal that the Chinese president’s visit to Tibet and now Xinjiang were choreographed as “a symbolic jubilee proclaiming the party’s success in binding its most restive frontiers into the heart of the nation.”

Over the past year, Beijing has shown increased focus on ethnic affairs. The Communist Party overhauled its ethnic policy leadership and removed several high-ranking ethnic-minority officials. Authorities also introduced a draft law aimed at “promoting ethnic unity and progress,” which includes measures to promote the use of standard Chinese among schoolchildren and requires parents and guardians to instil loyalty to the Communist Party and the motherland in minors.

Chinese authorities in Xinjiang have expanded surveillance over Uyghur Muslims by building high-tech security and directing a forced-assimilation campaign for Muslim ethnic minorities.

Foreign researchers have reported the use of mass internment camps for political indoctrination, alongside restrictions on religious practices and policies that have led to forced labour and the separation of families. Authorities have also demolished mosques and other religious sites.